Department for Transport

High Speed 2 Railway Line

Lord Berkeley: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is the (1) internal diameter, (2) cross-sectional area, and (3) maximum design speed allowable, in each of the HS2 train running tunnels, and what assessment they have made of how those compare to equivalent running tunnels on high speed lines in France.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: The design of HS2 tunnels has been considered in three separate groups, namely: Cut & Cover tunnels,Bored Tunnels with a maximum nominal line speed up to and including 230km/h,Bored Tunnels with a maximum nominal line speed of between 231 km/h and 360km/h. a, Cut & cover tunnels are twin cell tunnels with each cell measuring 7m wide x 9m high, giving a cross sectional area of 63m2 for a maximum nominal line speed of 360km/h. b, Bored tunnels with a maximum nominal line speed up to and including 230km/h have been designed with an internal diameter of 7.55m, giving a cross sectional area of 44.77m2. c, Bored tunnels with a maximum nominal line speed between 231 km/h and 360km/h have been designed with an internal diameter of 8.8m, giving a cross sectional area of 60.82m2. The cross sectional area of a tunnel is dependent is on a number of factors, including; maximum nominal line speed, tunnel length, railways structure gauge, railway system spatial requirements, aerodynamics including statutory requirements, operations and maintenance requirements including evacuation and safety. The impact of these factors has been assessed when determining the appropriate diameter/cross sectional area of each of the tunnels on the HS2 Phase 1 route. For this reason it is not appropriate to make a direct comparison between HS2 tunnels and those constructed in France or elsewhere in the world.

High Speed 2 Railway Line

Lord Berkeley: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their latest estimate of (1) the number of HS2 trains of each size required for HS2 Phase 1 and HS2 Phase 2, and (2) the total cost (a) of each type of train, and (b) for each phase.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: The Functional Response annexed to the Development Agreement outlines what HS2 Ltd will deliver to satisfy the Sponsor’s Requirements, including capacity requirements for both phases of the new railway. HS2 Ltd are in the process of completing their Rolling Stock Strategy which will contain greater detail on the fleet sizes expected to be procured. As part of the Spending Round announced in November 2015, the rolling stock funding envelope has been integrated with the relevant Phase specific infrastructure funding envelope as shown below. Phase One27.2Phase Two28.5Programme Total 55.7 Note. The above table shows information in £Billion at 2015 prices.

Motorcycles: Noise

Lord Laird: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what proposals they have to reduce the noise level of motorbikes travelling on public highways.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: There are already a number of measures in place to control motorcycle noise with manufacturers required to meet strict noise limits which are then enforced by the police and through the annual MOTs. There are currently no plans for further measures.

Roads: Litter

Lord Marlesford: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the amount of litter currently on the verges of (1) the A13 trunk road between the Limehouse Link and the junction with the A130, and (2) the A12 between the junction with the A130 and the junction with the A14 at Ipswich, and what steps the Highways Agency is taking to monitor the cleanliness of those roads.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: Due to the devolution of the highways network, it is necessary to be explicit on who has responsibility for litter on the verges. The A13 between the Limehouse Link and the Greater London Boundary, nominally the A1306 junction at Wennington, is the responsibility of Transport for London. Between the A1306 Wennington junction and the A1089 junction near Grays, this is the responsibility of Highways England, through its supplier, Connect Plus. For the A13 from the A1089 junction near Grays to the A130 junction near Basildon, this is the responsibility of the local authorities. The A12 between the A130 junction near Chelmsford and the A14 junction at Ipswich is the responsibility of the local authorities. Highways England is aware that litter is unsightly and detrimental to the environment and spends significant sums annually in ensuring it is cleared from the strategic road network each year. They are satisfied that Connect Plus grades the route and clears litter in accordance with the requirements of the Environmental Protection Act 1990 but is keen to work collaboratively with the local authority, Thurrock Council, to do more.

Roads: Litter

Lord Marlesford: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will review the arrangements with which the Highways Agency ensures that contractors responsible for keeping trunk roads clean fulfil their obligations, and whether they use photographic evidence to record the cleanliness of trunk roads.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: Highways England as a Government Owned Company, is responsible for complying with the mandatory legal requirements under the Environmental Protection Act 1990, which includes removing litter on England’s motorways and some trunk roads. Contractors have clear specifications, aligned to the Environmental Protection Act. Compliance is monitored by Highways England, with the use of photographic evidence as one possible method.

Roads: Litter

Lord Marlesford: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what was the total expenditure, in the most recent year for which information is available, of the Highways Agency on keeping (1) trunk roads, and (2) motorways, clear of litter.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: Under the Environmental Protection Act 1990 (EPA) Highways England is responsible for the management of litter on all England’s motorways and for a small portion of the all - purpose trunk roads. Local authorities are responsible for litter on all other roads, including the A roads within Highways England network. Highways England’s maintenance contracts are structured so that suppliers are paid a ‘lump sum’ for a wide range of general maintenance duties. These include sweeping, cleaning and litter clearance duties. Highways England does not disaggregate its budget and spend on these types of activities. Exact litter clearance costs cannot be extracted as the activity is performed on both a routine and ad-hoc basis to meet contractual requirements and the legal requirements under the Environmental Protection Act 1990.

Roads: Tunnels

Lord Berkeley: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon on 17 March (HL6898), what assessment they have made of the Mont Blanc tunnel fire of 1999 and the implications of that fire and subsequent investigations, inquiries and trials for (1) the construction of a Trans-Pennine Tunnel or other long road tunnels, (2) the safety management of such tunnels, (3) the classes of vehicles that will be permitted to operate through such tunnels, and (4) the licensing and inspection of different classes of vehicles, especially heavy goods vehicles, in using such tunnels.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: The Trans Pennine Tunnel Study will include the consideration of international best practice in tunnel design and management to learn lessons from around the world. The design and development of a Trans Pennine Tunnel will comply with the current international standards that were changed as a result of the Mont Blanc fire.

Roads: Tunnels

Lord Berkeley: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to Written Answer by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon on 17 March (HL6898), how many road tunnels worldwide there are of a comparable length to road tunnels planned underneath the Peak District; and for each of those (1) how long they have been in operation, (2) what traffic speed they operate at, (3) how many lanes there are and whether they have a hard shoulder, (4) what levels of air pollution are found within them, (5) what their construction cost was, and (6) whether they were delivered on time and on budget.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: We are currently examining a number of corridors to identify potential links between Manchester and Sheffield. At this stage the precise length of any tunnel is unknown. The initial findings on the construction and maintenance of a potential tunnel were published in the Interim Report in November 2015. The next stages of the study will examine shortlisted options in more detail and will include the consideration of international best practice. The conclusions will be published later this year.

Transport: Urban Areas

Lord Bradshaw: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon on 17 March (HL6801), what plans they have to introduce locally managed and self-financing schemes to deal with air pollution and the provision of urban bus services.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: We do not have specific schemes focused on self-financing urban bus services and air quality. However the Government is investing significant funding to help local authorities improve air quality and reduce emissions of harmful pollutants. This includes provision to bus fleets. The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) published an air quality plan for nitrogen dioxide in December 2015 setting out a comprehensive approach to meeting our ambition for the UK to have some of the cleanest air in the world, including by implementing a new programme of Clean Air Zones. Under the Plan, by 2020 the most polluting vehicles, including older polluting buses, will be discouraged from entering the centres of Birmingham, Leeds, Southampton, Nottingham and Derby. DEFRA has allocated funding to help these five cities implement Clean Air Zones. Additionally cities including Oxford, Norwich and Brighton have already taken steps to introduce zones to ensure the operation of cleaner buses in their areas.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

Africa: Females

Lord Quirk: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their assessment of the current increase in girls suffering "breast ironing" in Western and Central Africa, and especially in southern Cameroon.

Lord Quirk: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they are aware of the practice of "breast ironing" in Commonwealth countries of Africa, including Kenya and the Benin State of Nigeria, and if so, whether they have raised that issue with the governments concerned.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: The British Government is aware of the harmful practice of breast ironing in some Commonwealth and other African countries. There is little reliable data on the number of girls suffering this form of abuse, but we strongly condemn violence against women and girls in all its forms.The Government places gender equality at the heart of our bilateral development programming and works through diplomatic and development channels to tackle the causes and drivers of violence against women and girls as a matter of priority. The manifestations of violence may change but it is critical to address the structural causes of violence, including harmful beliefs and attitudes.In Cameroon, Kenya and Nigeria we are continuing to engage with governments and local communities to support the rights of women and girls, including ending harmful practices which constitute violence against women and girls. In Cameroon our High Commission has been working closely with the Minister of Women’s Empowerment and the Family on campaigns in coordination with local religious leaders, to raise awareness and support community-led change to end the harmful practice of breast ironing.

Israel: Palestinians

Baroness Tonge: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what representations they have made to the government of Israel concerning the reported raids on Palestinian homes on 1 March.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: We have not raised this issue with the Israeli authorities.

EU Staff

Lord Pearson of Rannoch: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many people are employed by the EU, including the European Court of Justice; and at what annual cost.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: In 2015, the EU and its institutions including the European Court of Justice employed 40,106 permanent members of staff. Further information on staff levels and administrative expenditure is available on the European Commission’s website.In 2013, the Prime Minister, my Rt Hon. Friend the Member for Witney (Mr Cameron), delivered a real-terms cut to the seven year EU budget framework for the first time in history and this deal continues to bring discipline to annual EU spending. As part of this deal, the UK secured some important reforms to administrative expenditure, including: a cash freeze to EU institutions staff salaries in 2013 and 2014, an increase in the retirement age for EU officials and a commitment by all EU institutions to reduce headcounts by 5% by the end of 2017.

Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

Iron and Steel: China

Lord Morris of Aberavon: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the answer by Lord Bridges of Headley on 25 February (HL Deb, col 389), when they first made representations to the EU Commission as regards allegations of dumping of Chinese steel; when action was taken by the Commission; and what assessment they have made of whether the Commission took effective and prompt action.

Baroness Neville-Rolfe: The European Commission currently has 37 measures in place against steel products, 16 of which concern imports from China. The government makes regular representations to the European Commission concerning allegations of dumping of steel. The government judges each anti-dumping investigation on its merits, based on the evidence presented by the Commission and on representations from interested parties, including producers, users and importers. We have supported industry calls for action in recent cases, for example in the reinforcing bar case we have raised the steel industry’s concerns that the provisional duties were too low with the Commission. My Rt Hon Friend the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills spoke with Commissioner Malmström about this and received assurance that the Commission will reconsider this during the definitive stage of the investigation, if industry can provide the necessary evidence. Given the current crisis in the steel industry, we continue to press the Commission for faster, more effective action to deal with dumping of steel.

Student Unions

Lord Stoddart of Swindon: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Evans of Bowes Park on 23 February (HL6060), whether, in the light of clause 10 of the Trade Union Bill and the laws regarding pre-entry trade union membership, they will take appropriate action to ensure that student unions are bound by the same rules as other unions.

Baroness Neville-Rolfe: Student unions are not trade unions, as specified by Section 1 of the Trade Union and Labour Relations (Consolidation) Act 1992. Therefore, none of the reforms being provided by the Trade Union Bill will impact students’ unions. The Education Act 1994 already requires publicly-funded universities to take reasonable steps to ensure that their students’ union observes the right for students to opt out of membership. The Green Paper “Fulfilling our Potential: Teaching Excellence, Social Mobility and Student Choice” sought public views on the role of students’ unions and what further steps could be taken to increase transparency and accountability to individual members. The Government plans to publish a White Paper in response in the spring.

EU Law

Lord Renwick of Clifton: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the remarks by the Prime Minister on 22 February (HC Deb, col 22), how they reached the conclusion that the cost of EU regulation will be going down, not up.

Baroness Neville-Rolfe: The Government's position, as set out by the Prime Minister to Parliament on 22 February, is that the UK will be stronger, safer and better off remaining in a reformed EU. Under our new settlement the European Commission has agreed for the first time to set specific targets to reduce the overall burden on businesses in key sectors. The European Council Declaration on Competitiveness commits to ‘doing more to reduce the overall burden of EU regulation, especially on SMEs and micro enterprises’. To implement this, the European Commission has agreed to introduce a new burden review mechanism. It will conduct an annual survey of the burdens imposed on businesses at the EU level. This process will identify legislation that should be revised or repealed to bring costs down, and will mean that limiting the cost of regulation will be a priority when proposals are developed, negotiated and agreed.

Department for International Development

Developing Countries: Sustainable Development

Baroness Tonge: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how they plan to engage with the UN Regional Commissions to develop Sustainable Development Goal indicators, and how they intend to involve civil society in that process.

Baroness Tonge: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how they plan to engage with the UN Regional Commissions to develop family planning and sexual and reproductive health indicators to accompany the goals and targets of the Sustainable Development Goals.

Baroness Tonge: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how they plan to engage with other countries to develop family planning and sexual and reproductive health indicators to accompany the goals and targets of the Sustainable Development Goals.

Baroness Verma: We welcome the agreement of the United Nations Statistical Commission (UNSC) on a global indicator framework for the Sustainable Development Goals, which includes indicators on the extent to which needs for family planning; adolescent birth rate; sexual violence; early marriage; female genital mutilation/cutting; informed sexual and reproductive health decision making; and legal frameworks on access to sexual and reproductive health care and information have been met. As the UNSC has noted, the framework is a practical starting point, and further work will be needed on some of the indicators. The UNSC has asked the Inter-Agency Expert Group on Sustainable Development Goal Indicators (IAEG-SDG) to take forward further work on the indicator framework. The IAEG-SDG is composed of member states and includes as observers regional and international organisations and agencies including the UN Regional Commissions. The Office for National Statistics expects to contribute to the development of SDG indicators via the relevant expert groups.

Gaza: Overseas Aid

Lord Hylton: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the reply by Lord Gardiner of Kimble on 17 March (HL Deb, col GC297), whether they will provide a breakdown of the £45 million spent in Gaza since October 2014.

Baroness Verma: In October 2014, the UK pledged £20 million in early recovery assistance at the Gaza Reconstruction Conference in Cairo. This included funding for reconstructive surgery and rehabilitation for those injured, clearance of unexploded ordnance, short term employment schemes, shelter and basic services, support to the private sector to reopen factories and businesses, funding for the UN’s new construction materials monitoring mechanism, technical assistance and direct support to the Palestinian Authority. The UK has disbursed this pledge in its entirety. Since then the UK has provided more than £25 million of additional support to Gaza for a range of activities, including basic service delivery and further support to the private sector.

Palestinians: Overseas Aid

Lord Hylton: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the reply by Lord Gardiner of Kimble on 17 March (HL Deb, col GC298), how much new employment has followed the expenditure of £349 million by the Department for International Development for Palestinian economic development between 2011 and 2015.

Baroness Verma: DFID’s support to the Occupied Palestinian Territories is delivering a range of results including enrolment of children in primary school, improvements to maternal health-care, humanitarian assistance and legal assistance to Palestinians at risk of eviction from their land. As part of this support, between 2011 and 2015, DFID provided over £3 million to the Facility for New Market Development Programme and Palestinian Market Development Programme, which has helped businesses expand into new markets and products, and supported the creation of over 2800 new jobs. DFID also provided £2 million to the UN Relief and Works Agency’s which supported the creation of over 45,000 short-term jobs for Palestinians in Gaza who have been affected by movement and access restrictions.

Department for Education

Academies: Admissions

Lord Ouseley: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to prevent academies from using selective processes to exclude certain pupils, such as paying comprehensive schools to take troublesome pupils or schools closing and re-opening with smaller intakes to achieve the exclusion of certain pupils.

Lord Nash: The Government supports head teachers in using exclusion as a sanction where it is warranted. It is, however, appropriate for schools to consider other measures to improve a pupil’s behaviour before taking a decision to exclude. This can include directing a pupil off-site to be educated in specialist alternative provision in order to help improve their behaviour. The Department has no evidence of schools closing in order to re-open with the goal of establishing a lower published admissions number (PAN) or achieving the exclusion of troublesome pupils. A reduction in PAN can only take place after the admission authority for a school has undertaken a full consultation in accordance with the School Admissions Code. Anyone can object to the Schools Adjudicator and the adjudicator can prevent the PAN from being reduced if the reduction is unfair or otherwise breaches the Code.

Apprentices

Baroness Morgan of Huyton: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they are planning to promote higher apprenticeships to inform pupils currently in key stage 3 of their future options.

Lord Nash: Higher apprenticeships are widening access to the professions, providing the higher level technical skills employers need to improve productivity and giving young people who do not go to university an equally valid career route. The government is taking a number of steps to ensure that apprenticeship opportunities at all levels are widely understood by young people from a young age so that they can make better informed decisions at key transition points. Schools have a legal duty to secure independent careers guidance for all pupils from year 8 onwards. This must include information on apprenticeships. Statutory guidance which underpins the duty is clear that schools should cooperate with other providers to ensure that young people are aware of the full range of education and training options available to them. The government will be launching a new apprenticeships campaign in May aimed at young people, their influencers and employers – it builds on the previous successful Get In Go Far campaign. The government is funding The Careers & Enterprise Company to roll out and manage its Enterprise Adviser Network, which was launched in September 2015. This is a network of employer volunteers coordinated by Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs) who are working in schools and colleges to support their careers and enterprise strategies and increase the number and effectiveness of employer-school interactions.Apprenticeships take-up is one of the criteria that LEPs are using to prioritise this support and advisers will be helping schools with their activity to provide well-informed information on apprenticeships. However, the range of information that young people receive remains too narrow and we want to go further. The government intends to bring forward legislation at the earliest opportunity that will require schools to allow other education and training providers the opportunity to talk to pupils about their offer on school premises. Schools will be required by law to collaborate with colleges, university technical colleges and other training providers, including apprenticeship providers, in putting those arrangements in place. This will ensure that young people hear much more consistently about the merits of alternatives to academic and school-based routes and are aware of all the routes to higher skills and into the workplace.

STEM Subjects: Primary Education

Lord Hunt of Chesterton: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the trend in the level of continuing professional development undertaken by teachers of STEM subjects in primary schools; what estimate they have made about the effect it will have on the standards attained by pupils; and whether they will provide funds to increase continuing professional development in the future.

Lord Nash: It is for schools to determine the professional development their teachers need. The Government funds a number of programmes which make high quality, professional development available to primary teachers. This supports our commitment to making Britain the best place in the world to study science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) subjects. The network of 35 Maths Hubs is working with many primary teachers to adopt effective south-east Asian ‘mastery’ teaching approaches to make sure that more children leave primary schools having met the expected standards in mathematics. The network of 44 Science Learning Partnerships provides support to primary teachers to improve their science subject knowledge and how they teach science including good quality practical work. Support to improve the teaching of the new primary computing curriculum is available through the Network of Teaching Excellence in Computer Science. All of these programmes are subject to ongoing evaluation to assess their impact. The Government remains committed to making sure primary school teachers continue to have access to high quality STEM professional development in the future.

Department for Work and Pensions

Personal Independence Payment

Baroness Doocey: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many Personal Independent Payment claimants have so far been awarded the top level of mobility support; and of those, what percentage were awarded that support as a result of points from (1) the "planning and following a journey" activity, (2) the "moving around" activity, or (3) a combination of the two.

Baroness Altmann: At the end of January 2016 there were 218,279 people in receipt of the enhanced rate mobility component of PIP. The latest available data on the proportion of awards of the enhanced rate mobility component by activity are in the table below: Activities/scoresProportion12 or more points on the “planning and following a journey” activity19%12 or more points on the “moving around” activity51%12 or more points on both “moving around” and “planning and following a journey”5%12 or more points from a combination of these activities.25% Notes:Figures relate to Normal Rules assessments only.Data at 31 December 2015.

Occupational Pensions

Baroness Byford: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what criteria they used to decide on which radio channels to advertise the new workplace pensions; whether they are being advertised on BBC Radio; and if not, why not.

Baroness Altmann: We select radio stations to reach the largest proportion of our employer target audience in a cost efficient manner. This is determined by RAJAR (Radio Joint Audience Research) listener surveys and using a sample audience profile that represents employers with less than 30 employees. We are unable to advertise on BBC Radio due to their commercial policy.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Agriculture: Forestry

Baroness Miller of Chilthorne Domer: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of any studies that have been conducted in the UK about integrating the cultivation of trees, crops and livestock on the same agricultural area, and of the conclusions of those studies.

Lord Gardiner of Kimble: Natural England commissioned a report from the Organic Research Centre and Abacus Organics considering the potential for agro-forestry options in the Countryside Stewardship scheme. The Land Use Policy Group commissioned an independent review of the evidence on agro-ecology including a consideration of agro-forestry, which was published in June 2015. The Government has not yet made an assessment of these studies but officials will be exploring the evidence base for agro-forestry and how this measure might operate in practice within the Rural Development Programme.

Agriculture: Forestry

Baroness Miller of Chilthorne Domer: To ask Her Majesty’s Government why the only current option for English farmers who wish to plant trees with CAP support is to have forestry as a separate enterprise on their holding, with densities of around 400 trees per hectare, rather than integrate the trees into their arable or livestock areas in a less dense planting.

Lord Gardiner of Kimble: English farmers can plant trees with Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) support either to create woodland habitat under the forestry measure of the Rural Development Regulation or to deliver a range of benefits such as landscape or the provision of nesting and habitat for farm wildlife under its agri-environment measure. Both these measures are available to farmers and other land managers as part of the Countryside Stewardship scheme. Tree-planting options do not require a minimum density (or number) of trees to be planted except when used to create new woodland.

Agriculture: Forestry

Baroness Miller of Chilthorne Domer: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what practical examples of agroforestry have been visited by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs staff in England, and what assessment they have made of whether, in the light of the fact that Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland have recently included agroforestry options into their rural development schemes, doing so would be an effective measure for England.

Lord Gardiner of Kimble: Officials from Defra and Natural England have recently visited an example of agro-forestry near Peterborough funded in part from organic and agri-environment measures in Environmental Stewardship. This was a very positive and valuable visit. Officials will be exploring the evidence base for agro-forestry and how this measure might operate in practice within the Rural Development Programme. However, the budget for Pillar 2 is finite and funding agro-forestry may have opportunity costs for other measures.

Agriculture: Forestry

Baroness Miller of Chilthorne Domer: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what advice they have received about the benefits of agroforestry in other European countries for soil conservation, biodiversity, productivity and the reduction of flooding.

Lord Gardiner of Kimble: Evidence and advice on agro-forestry is summarised in the Land Use Policy Group commissioned study “The Role of Agroecology in Sustainable Intensification (2015)” which reviewed the evidence on productivity, soils, biodiversity, etc. from other European countries (notably France and Germany) and North America.

Agriculture: Forestry

Baroness Miller of Chilthorne Domer: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of whether agroforestry measures under the CAP could help provide an incentive for farmers to plant some trees on pasture as opposed to clearing scrub and trees from pasture, and what assessment they have made of whether CAP Pillar 1 Ecological Focus Areas or Pillar 2 Article 23 measures would be more appropriate for English needs.

Lord Gardiner of Kimble: The Countryside Stewardship scheme provides options for farmers to manage both grassland and scrub in environmentally beneficial ways. Countryside Stewardship also provides opportunities to plant trees. These options can be used to deliver environmental enhancements and could contribute to agroforestry without needing to apply the Article 23 measure.CAP Pillar 1 Ecological Focus Areas can only include agroforestry where this is supported under Pillar 2 Article 23 measures (agroforestry). We have not implemented the agroforestry measure in England.

Babesiosis

Lord Greaves: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the implications of the discovery in the UK of the tick-borne canine parasite Babesia canis and the associated disease babesiosis in dogs; what action they are taking to provide information to dog owners, breeders, vets and others who come into contact with dogs, including those who deal with stray dogs; and what assessment they have made of the possible introduction into the UK of species of Babesia that may also infect humans, and of the possible presence of, and risks presented by, ticks that can host and spread both Babesia and Borrelia pathogens.

Lord Gardiner of Kimble: Experts at the Animal & Plant Health Agency (APHA) and Public Health England (PHE) are working together to investigate the locally acquired cases in Essex and this will include providing advice to the local authority, vets, pet owners and the public on what to do in the event of finding ticks on animals or observe clinical signs in pet dogs, through specialist press and public messages from the Defra, APHA and PHE communications teams. On the risks of introduction of pathogens such as Babesia and Borrelia to humans and potential spread by ticks, PHE is responsible for the monitoring of Lyme disease through surveillance of reference laboratory diagnosed cases and provides guidance on avoiding tick bites. PHE runs a “Tick Surveillance Scheme” for ticks found by members of the public, general practitioners, vets and those working with wildlife, so PHE can map tick species across the UK and monitor changes in distribution. Humans can be infected by Babesia microti, a rodent pathogen, and by Babesia bovis and Babesia divergens. Very few human cases have been reported in Europe or the UK, but virtually all have been related to B. divergens. In the US, human cases are caused by B. microti linked to white footed mice, a common rodent host of Borrelia burgdorferi in N. America. There are no reports of human infection with B. canis.

HM Treasury

VAT

Lord Kilclooney: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether levels of VAT in the UK can be reduced without the approval of the EU.

Lord O'Neill of Gatley: Member States have full autonomy over VAT within an agreed EU framework. Member States can apply a standard rate of VAT no lower than 15 per cent and apply a reduced rate of VAT no lower than 5 per cent.

Cabinet Office

Households

Lord Green of Deddington: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what was the change, if any, in the number of households in the UK with a (1) UK-born, and (2) non-UK-born, Household Reference Person between 2010 and 2015.

Lord Green of Deddington: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what was the change, if any, in the number of households in London with a (1) UK-born, and (2) non-UK-born, Household Reference Person between 2000 and 2015.

Lord Bridges of Headley: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.



Referral Letter
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